Showed the Russians the way across the Inhul: a traitor from Mykolaiv region was sentenced to 15 years

The Korabelnyi District Court sentenced him in absentia

Цей матеріал також доступний:

21 Jun 2026

0 0

In the Mykolaiv region, a local resident was convicted in absentia for voluntarily collaborating with Russian servicemen during the temporary occupation of the village Mar’ivka in Bashtanka district.

The verdict in the case of Yurii Volodymyrovych Kirtoka was handed down on 17 June 2026 by the Korabelnyi District Court of the city of Mykolaiv in a special judicial procedure, i.e., in the absence of the accused.

The man was found guilty under part 2 of Article 111 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine — treason committed under martial law.

The court sentenced him to 15 years of imprisonment with confiscation of all property.

The court found that Russian forces occupied Mar’ivka in March 2022. While in the occupied settlement, the accused voluntarily agreed to help representatives of the aggressor state.

In particular, he handed over to Russian servicemen two residential houses. The occupiers stationed personnel in these premises, set up a headquarters, rest areas, and also stored weapons and ammunition there.

The case materials describe how the occupying forces used the property provided by the accused.

“He stationed personnel of the Russian Armed Forces in residential houses located at two addresses, where they subsequently established a so‑called “headquarters”, a rest area for personnel and a place for storing weapons and ammunition.”

Besides providing the houses, the man supplied the Russian servicemen with food, drinking water and other necessary items.

According to the court, he also moved around Mar’ivka in his own Opel Astra, on which he painted the symbol of the Russian invasion — the letter “Z”.

The accused himself wore a white armband that the occupiers used as an identifying mark.

The verdict separately describes the external signs by which the man demonstrated his affiliation with the Russian invaders.

“The accused moved around the territory of Mar’ivka, Bashtanka district, Mykolaiv region in his Opel Astra, on which he painted the letter “Z”, which is a distinguishing sign of servicemen of the Russian Armed Forces, and wore a white armband, which is also a distinguishing sign of servicemen of the aggressor country.”

Witnesses questioned during the trial reported that the man urged other residents of Mar’ivka to cooperate with the occupying troops and help them with supplies.

According to eyewitnesses, he also directed Russian servicemen to local households where the occupiers could obtain food supplies.

Another episode involved helping the occupiers plan the movement of Russian military equipment across the Inhul River.

The court established that around 12 March 2022 the accused was sitting at the same table with Russian servicemen who were discussing the possibility of crossing the river.

When the occupiers asked how to get to the other bank, the man told them about the bridge between the villages of and Inhulka.

One of the witnesses told the court how the accused helped Russian servicemen choose a route for forcing the river.

“Around 12 March 2022 the witness was sitting on a bench in the yard of a household, where opposite him at a table sat the accused and servicemen of the Russian Armed Forces. They were discussing a plan to cross the Inhul River. When the servicemen asked the accused how they could get to the other side of the river, he told them that there is a bridge between the villages of Vynogradivka and Inhulka. Later the witness pointed to the place where the Russian Armed Forces tried to cross the Inhul River via the bridge between Vynogradivka and Inhulka. He also noted that the attempt was unsuccessful because a shell struck the crossing and destroyed the column of servicemen and equipment.”

Ukrainian forces liberated Mar’ivka on 17 March 2022. After the de‑occupation of the village, the accused left Ukraine and began hiding from law enforcement agencies.

Because of his absence, the investigation and the trial were conducted in a special procedure.

During searches of the man’s household, law enforcement officers found items belonging to Russian servicemen.

Among the seized items were a military uniform, a bulletproof vest, army boots, Russian field rations, equipment and a radiotelephonist’s notebook of the Russian Ministry of Defense.

The court concluded that the collected evidence and witness testimony confirm that the accused voluntarily provided assistance to representatives of the aggressor state in carrying out subversive activities against Ukraine.

In addition to 15 years imprisonment and confiscation of property, the court placed the convicted man’s land plot of 6.6 hectares under arrest. The arrest is necessary for the subsequent enforcement of the sentence in terms of confiscation.

The actual serving of the sentence will begin after the arrest of the convict and his transfer to Ukrainian law enforcement agencies.